suspended; suspending; suspends
Definition of suspend
1 : to debar temporarily especially from a privilege, office, or function
suspend a student from school
2a : to cause to stop temporarily
suspend bus service
b : to set aside or make temporarily inoperative
suspend the rules
3 : to defer to a later time on specified conditions
suspend sentence
4 : to hold in an undetermined or undecided state awaiting further information
suspend judgment suspend disbelief
5a : hang especially : to hang so as to be free on all sides except at the point of support suspend a ball by a thread
b : to keep from falling or sinking by some invisible support (such as buoyancy)
dust suspended in the air
c : to put or hold in suspension suspended sediment
6a : to keep fixed or lost (as in wonder or contemplation)
b : to keep waiting in suspense or indecision
7 : to hold (a musical note) over into the following chord
Keep scrolling for more
Keep scrolling for more
Keep scrolling for more
Keep scrolling for more
Test Your Vocabulary
Words of Snow and Ice Quiz
- Which of the following refers to thin, bending ice, or to the act of running over such ice?

Test your knowledge - and maybe learn something along the way.
TAKE THE QUIZ
Anagram puzzles meet word search.
TAKE THE QUIZLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridgedWords at Play
Ask the Editors
Word Games
Words of Snow and Ice Quiz
A selection of words from the chillier parts of t...
Take the quizName that Thing: Toys and Games Edition
It's all fun and games until someone beats your h...
Take the quizTrue or False?
Test your knowledge - and maybe learn something a...
Take the quizSCRABBLE® Sprint
SCRABBLE® fans, sharpen your skills!
Play the game
Share suspend
Time Traveler for suspend
The first known use of suspend was in the 14th century
See more words from the same century